Royal biographer Tom Bower claims they pose a growing threat to the monarchy and their alleged betrayals are ‘too catastrophic to forgive’
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex(Image: Getty Images)
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex face an uncertain future regarding their Royal titles amid what a Royal expert describes as their continuing betrayals and mounting threat to the Royal family. Biographer Tom Bower suggests the “ruthless” and unprecedented decision to strip Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor of his Duke and Prince titles ought to serve as a stark warning to the couple about what lies ahead once Prince William becomes monarch.
King Charles’s younger brother lost his titles and his Royal Lodge home of 20 years following further revelations about his decades-long friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. “For Harry, it was an unbelievable shock that the King could strip Andrew of his titles, including Prince, and it changes everything,” he told the Mirror. “He must really fear that William will strip him, Meghan and the children of their titles when he succeeds to the throne.
“They are on borrowed time and vulnerable now, because I don’t think there is anything they can do to reverse the hurt they have caused Kate and William, and William is still furious.”
Their repeated betrayals of the Royal family extend far beyond revealing the details of private interactions with Prince William and Kate in Harry’s memoir Spare and, according to Tom, many of them are simply too catastrophic to forgive. The most significant of all came from their astonishing interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021, the year after they stepped down as working royals, and the threat of them launching similar bombshells in the future is simply too large a risk for William to bear, adds Tom, reports the Mirror.
“The Sussexes have a real problem because Meghan isn’t making any serious money and nor is Harry really, so the threat is they’ll do something foolish and damaging to the royal family.
“They are uncontrolled, so the danger lies in Meghan maybe writing her own memoir, or doing another interview like Oprah Winfrey. The legacy of that interview cannot be overestimated and Meghan’s accusations that the royal family is racist still echo. Who knows what else she might say in the future?”
Another major bone of contention since the couple relocated and established a new life for themselves in Montecito, California, is Meghan’s use of her own Royal titles.
When the pair resigned as working royals, it was agreed with the Palace that they would cease using their His/Her Royal Highness titles, but they could still retain them. At the time, it was compared to the agreement with Andrew, who was then Duke of York.
However, when Meghan sent a gift to IT Cosmetics founder Jamie Kern Lima with a card that read, “With the Compliments of HRH The Duchess of Sussex” in April this year, it raised questions about whether she was violating their agreement.
Various sources close to the couple defended the monogrammed card, arguing that it was part of a personal gift and not related to her As Ever lifestyle business or any other commercial deals.
However, Meghan’s interview with Harper’s Bazaar earlier this month reignited the debate due to an unusual encounter described by journalist Kaitlyn Greenidge. She wrote about her meeting with Meghan: “When I enter, the house manager announces, ‘Meghan, Duchess of Sussex,’ even though we appear to be the only other two people in the house.”
According to Tom, whose second tell-all book on the Sussexes is due out next year, the title holds significant power for Meghan. He claims: “It’s a great trading asset, and she uses it ruthlessly and with impunity,” he claims. “It’s nothing to do with the royal family, she couldn’t care two hoots about that, she just uses it to give herself the status she craves.”
He continues: “I don’t think Meghan realised until Harry told her that his uncle had lost his title, that that is a reality. I don’t think she, or any of us, realised they could be so ruthless. I can only imagine she’s now sitting there thinking, ‘What are we going to do?’ Because without the titles, who is she? But she is betraying the royal family every time she uses the title.”
The bombshell statement from Buckingham Palace about King Charles, 77, formally stripping his brother of his “style, titles and honours” came a few weeks after Andrew, 65, relinquished his Duke of York title.
Whilst it stopped short of naming Epstein, who was found dead in his federal prison cell in August 2019 whilst awaiting trial, it stated, “These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him.”
However, stripping Meghan and Harry of their titles would not be such a straightforward decision, Tom says, and it won’t be King Charles’s signature on the papers. “With the Sussexes’ titles, it’s a rock and a hard place for the royal family. The only way to undermine Meghan’s status, although it would look like sour grapes, is to take away her title.
“And it won’t happen during Charles’s lifetime. He will only act on William’s pressure and there’s no reason ostensibly at the moment to strip them of their titles, they haven’t done anything embarrassing, other than using it to trade on. They would have to be very careful about how they do it, but I think it is inevitable.”
